Safety ratchet-lever.



H. P.RBST0N. SAFETY RATCHM LEVER. APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 18, l911 1,018,080. Patented Feb.20,1912.

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Topll'whom it may concern:

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RESTON, or OAKLEY, omo,- AssIeNon .aio THE ciNciimAn rLANnn coxrANY, or oAxmiY, 0310,11 CORPORATION or omo.

sAru'rYA nrcan-Lavinia speculation of man ment. Patente-d Feb. 20, 1912.

Appiioauon ma sept'mber 18,1911. semi No. 649,649.

Be it known that I, HENRY P. Rns'iorr, av

citizen -of England, residing at Oakley,

Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Safety Ratchet-Levers, of.

which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to safety ratchet I levers of the class adapted to rotatively adjust the rail feed screws of metal planers or for other suitable purposes, and the objects of my improvements are `to provide means for automatically moving and maintaining under a yielding pressure the detent or pawl out of engagement with the ratchet wheel; to provide means for positively locking the mechanism out of engagement;

. to provide reversible means fort/he device;

to provide means for engaging the pawl with the ratchet wheel under a yielding pressure, and to provide simple and durable construction and assemblage of the various parts for securing facility of operation, safety and efliciency of action. These objects may be attained in the following de-- scribed manner as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation with parts in lsection of a safety ratchet lever embodying my improvements; Fig. 2 a longitudinal 80 section; Fig. 3 a perspective view 0f the latch lever, and Fig. 4 a section on the linev af-a of Fig. 1.

In the drawings, 1 represents a shaft or screw journaled in the usual bearings, 2 a

ratchet wheel splined thereon and formed with oppositely extended hubs, 3 and 4, and

` with peripheral teeth 5 which are preferably rectangular in cross-section. A cylindrical housing 6 is formed with a bore 7 wherein hub 3 is journaled and with a counter-bore 8 wherein the toothed portion of' the wheel 2 may turn freely'.

A keeper 9 mounted to turn oli hub 4 and secured to the housing by means of screws 11 serves to ret-ain the ratchet wheel in proper position therein. A radial arm' 12 integral with the housing is formed with an axial opening 13 therethrough which is' counter-bored to form annular shoulders or oi`sets-14, 15and 16 therein. Said arm is also formed with a transverse opening 17 adjacent to the shoulder 15 for the movement therein of the latch lever 18 which is ivotally secured to lugs 19 formed of oneside of the armV 12. A plunger-21 siidabiy mounted within the axial opening of the arm `12 is reduced in size in its upper ortion to form an annular shoulder 22an increased in size at its opposite end to form a boss 23 which is' adapted to contact with shoulder 16. Said boss is formed with longitudinal grooves 24 and counter sinks 25 alternately disposed quarteringin its face for automatically engaging with the sprin actuated locking pin 26 which is mounted in an opening 27 formed in the housing as shown in Fig. 4. A widenose 28 formed with a taper on one side projects from the y end of boss 23 for -engaging with its face the teeth of the ratchet wheel and for preventing its opposite or slanting side from engaging therewith. A sleeve 31 sildably mounted on the plunger maybe actuated in one direction thereon by means of the bell crank lever 18 for compressing the coiled spring 32 which encircles the plunger between shoulder 22 thereon and said sleeve.` A milled head 33 secured on the end of the plunger serves to adjust it rot-atively and also to compress the coiled spring 34 which encirclesthe plun er thereunder and in-contact with the shoul er 14. Said spring 34 serves to move and maintain the plunger under a yielding pres'- sure in its normal position with the nose 28 out of engagement with the ratchet wheel. A quarter turn of the plunger by means of the head 33 serves to automatically engage l the locking pin 27 with the corresponding counter sink 25 to positively lock the plunger in its disengaged position with nose 28 in the plane of rotation of the ratchet wheel as an additional preventative to its accidental engagement with the teeth thereof. I e' In operation, the plunger may be turned in either fofopposite directions by means of the milled head thereon for disengaging the locking pin from the counter sink and slidably engaging it with the lcorresponding groovein the boss. The bell crank lever may now be actuated with the sleeve on the plunger to com ress spring 32 for overcoming the exertion o spring 34 in the opposite direction whereby the nose engages with the this position causes the locking pin to automatically engage with the lcorresponding countersink as an additional protection to any accidental movement of the plunger with the nose thereon into rengagement. The,

a feed screw in either direction for effecting p a micrometer adjustment of the tool hea on the rail of a metal planer where the swing of the lever is limited and where its accidental engagement must be prevented duringthe ower driven action of the screw.

Having ully described my improvements what I claim as my invent-ion and desire vto secure by. Letters `Patent of the United States is:

l. The combination of a tubular member, a plun er. therein formedV with a latch, a spring or moving and maintaining the plunger longitudinally in one direction,V and a hand actuated spring for overcoming the exertion of the former spring and for moving and maintaining the plunger under a yielding pressure -in the opposite direction.

2. The combination of a rotative shaft, a ratchet Wheel splined thereon, a lever mounted to turn on the Wheel, a plunger movable longitudinally Within the lever and formed with a flat tapering nose adapted to engage with the Wheel, a spring for moving and maintaining the plunger with the nose out of engagement with the wheel, and hand actuated spring mechanism constructed and arranged to overcome the exertion of said spring and for moving and maintaining under a yielding pressure the plunger in the opposite direction with the nose in engagement with the wheel.

3. The combination of a ratchet wheel, a

lever mounted to turn thereon, arotatively i adjustable plunger movable longitudlnally within the lever and formed with a. slantin nose ada ted to engage with the wheel sai plunger ing also formed with a longitudinalgroove and a counter sink in its face, and a spring actuated locking pin adapted to automatically engage with the groove and counter sink successively for maintaining the plunger under a yielding pressure in prep determined positions of rotative adjustment.

4. The combination of a ratchet wheel, a lever'movable in relation thereto, a detent movable with the lever, a spring for maintaining the detent,under a yleldlng ressure out of engagement with the whee and a hand controlledspring for overcoming the exertion of the former spring and for moving and maintaining the detent under a yielding pressure into engagement with the Wheel.

5. The combination of a ratchet wheel, a. lever movable parallel to the plane thereof, a spring contro led reversible detent ada ted to be engaged .with the wheel under a ylelding pressure and movable with the lever, and automatic means for locking the detent out of engagement with the wheel.

6. In a ksafety ratchet lever the combination of a -ratchet wheel, a radial arm movable in relation thereto, a longitudinally movable pawl carried by the arm and adapted to detachably engage with the wheel, oppositely disposed springs for moving and maintaining the pawl in respective opposite directions under a yielding pressure, and lever connections for increasing the exertion of one of said springs for overcoming the exertion of the other said spring.

HENRY P. RESTON. Witnesses:

Cms. G. JOHANNESMEYER, R. S. CARR. 

